


space oddity | vislor turlough

by nihilisten



Series: my reader inserts [31]
Category: Doctor Who
Genre: Beach Holidays, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-15
Updated: 2020-07-15
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:47:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25282600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nihilisten/pseuds/nihilisten
Summary: Far from home, yet at the same time, not far at all.[vislor turlough/reader]
Relationships: Vislor Turlough/Reader
Series: my reader inserts [31]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1048064
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	space oddity | vislor turlough

**Author's Note:**

> Trion's description is probably off, among some other things. But Turlough is a sweetheart, so I hope it can be forgiven!

It was a rare day of leisure for you and your two friends. The Doctor had managed, for once, land the TARDIS on a ‘touristic planet’, as he would call it, only to disappear as soon as the door opened, probably having remembered an extremely urgent matter to settle, leaving you and Turlough to your own devices.

Since Turlough had also gone his own way before anyone could even notice when or where, you’d left the TARDIS to take a stroll on a nearby beach.

“Stupid Doctor. Stupid Vis. Leaving me all alone, when we were supposed to go on holiday.”

Muttering to yourself, you walked along the shore, warm sand pleasant under your feet.

It vaguely reminded you of beaches on Earth, with all the visitors (though you wouldn’t exactly dare call them _people_ ) and the stalls full of toys, snacks and souvenirs. Normally, you’d ignore the attractions and go the opposite way, but this setting was anything but normal. Eventually you stopped to buy some sparkling cotton candy, only to discover it tasted nothing like actual cotton candy – it was crunchy and fizzy, but soft at the same time. Content with your discovery, you decided to later ask the Doctor about it.

Just as you thought that, eating a fluffy candy to lift up your moods, a familiar face entered your field of vision. Except it wasn’t the Time Lord. It was Turlough.

Curiously, you approached him on your tiptoes as if not to be noticed. That, however, was unnecessary: the boy seemed completely occupied over a pad of paper, and the fact he was managing not to bump into any of the creatures crowding around looked quite like an acrobatic stunt. Was he taking notes of some sort? About the planet, maybe?

“Here you are, Vis. I was wondering where you’d gone off to.”

Your voice made him flinch in surprise. Upon noticing you, Turlough quickly pressed the paper pad to his chest, then cleared his throat.

“I told you not to call me that stupid nickname.” His eyebrow furrowed and his gaze refused to meet yours. “I was just wandering about.”

“You could have waited for me,” you pointed out, but the sweet snack had lifted your spirits enough to spare Turlough any reproach. “Want some?”

Still surprised, the boy eyed the candy you offered him. For some reason he seemed wary of your every move. But before long, he reached and picked up some of the cotton to plop it in his mouth. And then he grimaced.

“It’s sour.”

“Oh, you don’t like sour things? Too bad, your face was priceless.” You laughed at his scowl. “Anyway, want to take a stroll further ahead? I haven’t seen the Doctor anywhere so I guess we might be staying here longer than anticipated…”

“You can say that again.” Turlough eyed the crowd with a somewhat exasperated face. Nonetheless, he started walking next to you as you two headed down the beach, to a more deserted area. “But if you ask me, we can stay to your heart’s content. I’m tired of being captured.”

A giggle that arose in your throat came out as a full-blown laughter instead. Even Turlough smiled, if only slightly. The candy must have had an uplifting effect on people, judging by how the grumpy Trion got less grumpy. What if it had drugs in it? The thought made you laugh out loud again, which in turn caused Turlough to look at you with amusement.

“Someone’s overexcited.”

“Me? Nah,” you grinned at him in a very convincing way, throwing the empty candy stick into a nearest rubbish bin. “I’m quite shocked myself. You know, had it been Earth, I’d be dying to get back on the TARDIS as leave as soon as possible. I hate those typical holiday destinations!”

“Tell me about it. Back at Brendon, they loved to send us on school trips to the likes of this.” With a bitter smile, Turlough looked around the beach. The crowd had been left behind by now, and the two of you finally had the room to actually breathe the alien air. “I guess this isn’t so bad, though.”

Forcing yourself not to grin like a loon again, you nudged him playfully.

“Tell me then.”

He blinked. “Tell you what?”

“What’s that you’re holding.”

Turlough looked down at the paper pad in his hands, with an expression like he’d forgotten he was holding it. Immediately, he pulled it closer.

“No way.”

“Oh, come on!” You reached out to him, more to tease him than to actually grab the pad by force. “Is it so embarrassing?”

“It’s not embarrassing, it’s just none of your business.” He retorted, but you could tell his composure was crumbling.

Taking advantage of his slight opening, you leaned over as if to kiss him on the cheek. The poor boy froze; in that moment, you swiftly snatched the pad out of his hands and jumped back, taking distance from him in case he wanted revenge.

“What—Y/N! Give it back!” He demanded, seemingly trying to sound angry, but it came out more like a plea. It was too late anyway, you’d already held the pad in front of your eyes and what you saw left you with your mouth agape.

On the paper, there was a pencil drawing of a landscape both familiar and unfamiliar.

A beach, almost like the very one you were currently on. The sand, the sea, the stalls and the people – everything was rendered with utmost precision and dedication. But there was certain foreignness to it; the sand more silvery, the sea deeper and less welcoming. It looked too real to be a figment of the creator’s imagination, but it certainly wasn’t _this place_.

You were awestruck.

Turlough didn’t waste any more time either. While your mind was trying to process what you’d just seen, he quickly snatched the pad back and clutched it with his fingers, so hard that his knuckled turned white. But his face – oh his face – was anything but pale, quite the contrary, he seemed flushed.

“…You drew this?” You asked when your voice had finally returned.

“So what if I did?” Clearly embarrassed, Turlough was reluctant to even answer. You looked at him with wide eyes, making him flinch under that gaze. “D-do you mind not boring holes in me, thanks?”

“That was amazing!” You exclaimed, and poor Turlough flinched yet again. “It looked so real! Almost like a photograph.”

His face coloured with the full spectrum of emotions, from surprise to wariness, as he searched for words. Eventually, he only cleared his throat. “It’s nothing. Just a practice sketch.”

“That’s a practice sketch? Then I need to see your proper works.” You clapped your hands together, excitement taking over completely. “Show me when we return to the TARDIS? Please—”

“—No—”

“—Please, Vis, please, pretty please?”

Seeing that you wouldn’t give up, Turlough sighed in resignation.

“Thank you!” You flashed him a bright smile, though it quickly paled as you remembered the drawing yet again, and something switched in your mind.

“What?” Turlough asked, noticing the change in your expression.

“It’s nothing, I just… That place you drew. It’s not here, is it?”

He blinked once, twice, as if the meaning of your words hadn’t sunk in straight away. He looked away, somewhere in the distance, where the sea connected with the horizon over which two suns floated.

“It was my home planet.”

You fell silent, a sting of guilt pricking at your heart. So that’s why he had hidden it. This planet, this beach, no matter how different, it had reminded him of home.

But Turlough lifted his head; his expression was suddenly relaxed, like a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders. His eyes gleamed with new light, one that made your heart jump.

“If only you could see the real thing. My drawing doesn’t even compare. It’s nothing like the Earth, or this. A swim could kill you. The sand is poisonous. But yet, despite everything, it’s beautiful.”

“Vislor…”

Breeze came from the sea, rustling your hair, as well as Turlough’s collar. When he looked at you again, the weird light was gone from his eyes, replaced with slight abashment.

“Look what you’ve done, making me talk nonsense. What are you waiting for? Go and grab me some more of that weird candy of yours.”

Throwing your head behind, you laughed, laughed so hard that your lungs started hurting. Turlough played along; he took a handful of sand and shot it at you.

“That’s cheating!” Pulling him by his free hand, you started running towards the crowded stalls again (and almost made the two of you fall over in the process). “No way I’m going alone!”

“You’re the most unnerving Earthling I’ve ever met,” he forced down a laugh.

“And you wouldn’t have it any other way, would you?”

“Oh, just you wait—”


End file.
